This invention is directed to an absorbent garment, such as a training pant, swimsuit, diaper, incontinence garment or similar absorbent vehicle, wherein the leg elastic is strategically placed such that the distance between the leg elastic is roughly equal to the width dimension of the outer cover of the finished product. The strategic placement of the leg elastic provides for an aesthetically pleasing, finished look at the leg openings. Furthermore, the folding of the outer cover layer entraps the leg elastic material, thereby eliminating the chance of exposing the leg elastic to the user.
Disposable absorbent garments having a pant-like configuration are used for child training pants, adult incontinence garments, diapers, swimsuits and the like. Referring to FIG. 1, a prior art pant-like absorbent garment 2 includes a waste containment section 4 and two side portions 6 and 8 defining a waist opening 10 and a pair of leg openings 12 and 14. The side panel 6 includes stretchable panels 18 and 20 joined together at seam 30. The side panel 8 includes stretchable panels 24 and 26 joined together at seam 33. Seams 30 and 33 extend longitudinally from the waist opening 10 to the leg openings 12 and 14 of the garment 2.
The waste containment section 4 includes multiple layers (not shown) including, for instance, a liquid-permeable inner layer, an absorbent core layer, and a liquid-impermeable outer cover layer 16 which faces away from the wearer. The waste containment section 4 also includes elasticized waist portions 22 on the front and back of the garment. The leg opening portions 12 and 14 also include elastic portions 46 which extend substantially around the portion of the leg openings defined by the waste containment section 4.
The elastic portions 46 are typically manufactured by situating elastic a set dimension from the edge of the outer cover 16. The excess material between the elastic and the edge of the outer cover 16 results in a ruffled, unfinished appearance at the leg openings 12 and 14. Current pant designs have the elastic sandwiched between a cloth layer and a polymer layer of the outer cover 16, while current diaper designs have the elastic attached to an inside surface of the polymer layer of the outer cover 16. Both methods result in a ruffled, unfinished appearance at the leg openings 12 and 14. Furthermore, when the elastic is attached to an inside surface of the garment, the elastic is exposed to the user""s skin, which neither looks good nor feels good. With the growing trend of disposable pants being worn without a coverup, such as, for example, disposable swimsuits, a neater, more finished appearance is a desirable trait for such garments.
The disposable garment also includes leak guards in both leg openings, which help prevent lateral leakage of waste material through the leg openings. The leak guards have commonly been provided by elasticized flap portions 50 which are connected to the interior of the garment along the lower part of each leg opening. During use, the elasticized flap portions 50 fit snugly against the wearer and effectively block most spillage of waste material from the leg openings.
When flap portions 50 are used for the leak guards, a separate manufacturing step is required to attach the flap material to the garment. Generally, the flaps 50 have been joined via seams 52. During active use, some separation at the seams 52 can occur, resulting in failure of the flaps 50 to serve as effective leak guards. Providing a seam which is both leakproof and durable has been challenging, and has added to manufacturing costs. To solve this problem, seamless leak guards were disclosed in the parent U.S. application Ser. No. 09/290,414, referenced above. However, the parent application does not thoroughly address the ruffling caused by elastic portions 46.
The present invention is directed to a disposable pant-like absorbent garment with or without seamless leak guards, in which the leg elastic is strategically placed at a location on the outer cover layer to prevent a ruffled, unfinished appearance at the leg openings. In the resulting garment, the distance between the leg elastic is nearly equal to the width dimension of the outer cover of the finished product. In one embodiment, the elastic may be secured to the outer cover layer near its edge, and the outer cover layer folded over the elastic and sealed to itself. In another embodiment, the elastic may be placed between a liquid-permeable body side liner and the outer cover layer near its edge, with the outer cover layer folded over both the elastic and part of the body side liner, and secured to the body side liner. In another embodiment, the outer cover layer may be folded more than once around the elastic. In addition to being aesthetically pleasing, the finished product eliminates the chance of exposing the leg elastic to the user.
As described in the parent application, instead of using flaps, seamless leak guards may be provided by extending the liquid-impermeable outer cover layer substantially beyond the absorbent layer on both sides, and to a higher location on the garment and on the wearer. The outer cover extensions on both sides can be reinforced at their edges by the elastic leg bands which pull the outer cover extensions upward and away from the absorbent layer, and against the wearer""s body. The lateral extensions of the outer cover material, combined with the upward pulling of the elastic leg bands, may provide the garment with seamless leak guards not requiring separately attached flaps. However, the present invention is not limited to the use of seamless leak guards, but is also applicable to garments having the conventional side flaps.
With the foregoing in mind, it is a feature and advantage of the invention to provide a disposable pant-like absorbent garment with strategically placed leg elastic to produce an aesthetically pleasing, finished appearance around the leg openings.
It is also a feature and advantage of the invention to provide a disposable pant-like absorbent garment wherein the user""s legs are not exposed to the leg elastic.
It is a further feature and advantage of the invention to provide a disposable absorbent garment with a non-ruffled, finished appearance around the leg openings either with seamless leak guards, or with attached flaps.